The Dark Forest
by Hules17
Summary: Ever since Winter was a child she has felt drawn to the forest by her house. She has always tried to go into them but her mother has always tried to keep her away from them. Why?
1. Chapter 1

*Winter POV 

"Winter, you're just an ordinary girl," my mother, Sara Marley, tried to convince me.

"Aren't you supposed to tell me I'm destined for greatness or something?" I'd asked her sarcastically, then stormed out into the cool October air of Transylvania, Oregon. I could see the edge of the Dark Forest, barely. There has always been a fence that reached as far as the horizon and as tall as the tallest trees in the Dark around them were also signs that stated "BEWARE!" "TURN BACK NOW!" and others that promised the unimaginable in that forest. But I, WinterMarley, have always felt a pull to those woods.

Just then I had a flashback to when I was smaller. I was still trying to walk at the age of two. I could never grasp the concept of how walking was faster than crawling. It was hard to believe that this memory was 15 years ago. It felt like it happened so long ago. The memory was of me walking outside about halfway to the Dark Forest and then crawling the rest of the way. Mom had caught me before I could cross through a gap in the fence though.

Now I was sprinting to that same forest. Ready to embrace the thought of certain dangers. I could hear my mom shouting something at me but I couldn't hear what it was because of the wind smacking my ears. "I'll show her who's truly ordinary," I'd told myself as I dove head first into the Dark Forest.

AS I walked deeper into the forest it grew darker and I understood why they called it the Dark Forest. There was an eeriness about the weather. It was at least 5 degrees cooler. I could hear the howling of a wolf. rustling of the leaves on the trees, and I could have sworn that in the distance I heard the laughter of someone…. or something. _Get a hold of yourself, Winter!_

Just then I saw bright blue eyes staring at me from a nearby bush. An image of those same icy blue eyes came to mind and were gone in an instant. "What are you doing here little girl?" the man questioned me with a smirk.

"I'm 17. I'm not little. Plus I could ask you the same question," I'd stated. Of course he would call me little, he towered over me by at least six inches.

"What's your name, Tiny?"

"It's Winter Marley. What's yours?" I'd said with some defiance.

"Daniel Ben's the name." He wore torn jeans, a dark blue shirt that brought out his eye color more and a black jacket with a leather jacket on top. He must live near the forest. "What's someone like you doing here?"

"Certain reasons. Why are you?"

"Don't like to be questioned I see," he observed, acting like I never asked him the same question. "Are you going anywhere in particular?" I start to walk away and then he grabbed my arm. "I'm trying to offer you some help. You shouldn't be wandering the forest alone, Tiny."

"My name is Winter and why should I trust you?"

He thought that one over and then stated in a matter-of-fact voice,"Because you can't protect yourself from what's in this forest."

"Fine," I mumbled.

We walked for an hour or so when I saw glowing, golden eyes looking at us through a bush. _Nope, not going that way_ I thought. Before I could turn and go the other way, there were eyes all around us. There was so much growling to the point where I thought there was a car nearby.

As the first wolf lunged out of the bushes, Daniel yanked me behind him and whipped out a knife. Where'd he get that? The one I guessed was the leader howled, "Wait! She's not the one. We're looking for a girl with hair the color of flames and this one has the color of snow."

"Why are you looking for that girl?" I questioned.

"Your little girlfriend is a curious one. Maybe a little too curious…" the wolf snarled at Daniel as he sauntered closer to us.

"We aren't dating," I protested, but they kept talking as if I said nothing at all.

"Yeah, I thought the exact same thing when I met her," Daniel smirked down at me. My face instantly turned red. Why was I so embarrassed? "What's the girl's name?" Daniel asked.

"Goldy," the alpha spit out."She stole food from us!" What person in their right mind would Steal from wolves?

"Got it. Goldy. We'll keep an eye out for her. Let's go, Tiny," Daniel motioned for me as he walked away.

"It's Winter," I mumbled. He ignored me. I hustled a little to catch up to him. As he strolled along the Dark Forest his short brown hair wasn't even blowing in the wind. Mine, on the other hand, was slapping me in the face every chance it got. When he whistled… wait, that noise. I've heard it before.

A scene played across my eyes. I was four and I was outside wandering around and I could hear that exact same whistling noise playing from a distance. Just like the last one this one disappeared just as fast. What was going on?

"Hey! Tiny, are you coming?" I must have stopped because Daniel was a few yards ahead of me.

"Oh! Yeah I'm coming," I jogged up next to him and then slowed my pace and put my hands in my grey hoodie pockets.

As we ambled on in silence I noticed something up ahead. As we drew closer I realized there were three different heaps of things on the ground. The first was straw. The second were sticks. The third were bricks. Little pieces all over the place. "What's that about?" I asked, pointing at the mess.

"The wolves," he barely even glanced over at it.

"What?"

"The pigs that lived there hurt a lot of their young," Daniel stated coolly and kept walking.

 _"What is wrong with this place? Wolves can talk and pigs live in houses? What's next? Mermaids_!"

"Actually they are on the other side of the forest where the Great Lake is," Daniel stated.

"How'd you know I was thinking that?" I squinted my eyes at him.

"You were talking."

"Oh…" I looked at the ground. We walked in silence a bit longer. It was getting colder as we dove deeper into the forest. The wind was picking up speed.

"Here," he took off his jacket and gave it to me. "Wouldn't want you to freeze." When I took it I got a whiff of fresh air and soap. I draped it over myself and was instantly warmer. I could make a little tent out of this for myself if I wanted to with how big it was on me. I laughed to myself.

"Thank you," I mumbled.

He stopped abruptly and turned around. I, being the graceful person I always am, stumbled right into him. It was like hitting a brick wall. He grabbed onto my shoulders and steadied me. He bent his head so that he was staring into my eyes. The image of those eyes popped into my head again. I shook it to clear it. "It's getting late. We should camp here." He didn't say it like a question. We went around and started looking for twigs and other things to burn.

By the time I got back to the spot we decided to camp at, he had a fire crackling around us. He was leaning up against a tree that had fallen with his legs stretched out in front of him. I have always liked the smell of a fire. The smoke circled around in the air above us. I glanced up and saw the trees caging us in with their branches. they kind of looked like arthritic fingers reaching out to touch each other. As the wind blew the trees shook hands.

I had a strange feeling that I was being watched. As I adverted my gaze from the trees I realized that Daniel was watching me rather intently. "Can I help you with something?" I questioned. 

"Shhh… Stay very still," he whispered, putting his finger to his lips. As he shuffled closer to me I felt more and more curious. What was he planning on doing? Would I be fine with what he was about to do? His face was a few inches from mine. My face was getting warmer. He had shadows dancing around his face from the fire's glow. Those blue eyes were darker now. He had a dimple on his right cheek. His eyelashes were long. I was jealous of them. I could see his hand moving towards my face out of the corner of my eye. He touched my shoulder. "Got it!"

"Huh,"

"You had a spider on you," he stated Seriously, what is going on with me? What did I think he was going to do?

"Oh. Umm… thanks," I stuttered. My face is getting warm. An awkward silence crept up on us. "Welp, good night." I said a little too quickly. I curled up in a ball and tried to sleep Hoping I could sleep away my embarrassment.

"Night, Tiny," he whispered.

I woke up the next morning to the sound of a thud. I glanced up and Daniel wasn't in the spot he was in last night. Where'd that guy go? As I searched around I spotted him a few yards away. He was chucking knives at a tree stump. His sleeves were rolled up and he was dripping with sweat. I could see the muscles in his arm flex as he threw them and an outline of something on his upper arm. Each knife hit right next to the one thrown before it. He threw them with ease.

As he went to retrieve the knives, he spotted me staring. A smile crossed his face, he waved, and he jogged up to where the knives were. I scrambled to get up. "Hey," I croaked. Smooth. 


	2. Chapter 2

*Daniel POV 

I grinned and shook my head. _That girl really is something else,_ I laughed to myself.

Then I remembered my mission. Keep her safe. "How'd you sleep, Tiny?" I asked as I walked up to her.

"Decently," she stated.

"Good. We've got a long day ahead of us if we want to make it," I babbled.

"Make it where?"

"You'll see when we get there." _If we get there,_ I added to myself. I shake my head to clear it. What am I thinking, we will make it or at least she will. Keep her safe. Don't let her out of my sight. She might not be the one for all I know, but Mister I'm-in-charge said to watch her "just in case." Sometimes that guy gets on my nerves. She smiles at me. Other times I'm okay with his orders. Wait… what am I thinking? She's my mission.

"Where are we going, again?" she questioned me.

"You see, I never actually told you so you wouldn't know anyways," I said matter-of-factly. She squints at me and I smirk at her like I just solved something that she couldn't.

As we trudged on something jumped into our path. Keep her safe. I push her behind me and brought out a knife. "Have you seen a girl with a red hood come along?" the bear snarled.

"No," I stated defensively. "Name?"

"Goldy, she stole food from us," he spat out. Seriously, what is wrong with that girl?

"We'll keep an eye out for her," I yelled back to him as I walked off.

"What is wrong with that girl?" Winter asked.

"I was wondering the same thing," I said a little too sharply. " come on. Let's get moving. We are about to the place." 


	3. Chapter 3

*Winter POV 

We get to this giant clearing and there are huge black tents everywhere like someone's about to go to war. "What is all this?" I wonder aloud. Just then a girl that couldn't be older than 13 came running up in a red hood and jumped into Daniel's arms.

"Danny!" she screeched.

"Hey Gold," he grinned and caught her. "How was your day? I've heard you've been busy 'gathering' food again."

"Who's your friend?" she ignored the comment.

"This is Winter Marley. Tiny, this is my sister Goldy," Sister! I wave at her. "We need to talk to dad. Do you know where he is?" She points at a tent, he sets her down, and we start heading towards it.

His sister! How could a person look so innocent and act so cruelly. Seriously, who would steal from a wolf or a bear? 

As I thought through these questions Daniel and I step into a massive tent. There were a few couches and chairs around it. In the middle was a huge table with what looked like a board game that hadn't been finished yet sitting in the middle. There were documents and graphs all over the place. It looked as if something was being planned out. But what could it be? 


	4. Chapter 4

*Daniel POV 

"This is my father Michael Ben. Dad this is Winter Mar…"

"Ah, yes I know," I hate it when he interrupts me. "You look just like your mother did at that age." He stated.

"How do you know my mom?" She looked unsettled.

"I'm surprised she's never mentioned me." He actually looked shocked. My father looked shocked? "None the less, your mother and I used to be neighbors when we still went to school here. Back before everything turned to darkness and cruelty. Back before she left." He looked as if he were in a whole other time. I cleared my throat and that brought him back. "Oh! Sorry I was just reliving old memories. Let's show you around the camp, shall we?" He gestured to the door we just entered.

As we walked around he pointed out different kinds of tents like the mess hall and medical tent and others. I mostly just busied myself with cleaning the dirt from underneath my nails with one of my knifes. Tiny seems to be enjoying herself walking around here. She's clueless, for now anyways, of what's really going on. Tonight her world will be completely turned around at the war meeting. She's been holding up just fine with the animals talking and all that other stuff. What could go wrong? 


	5. Chapter 5

*Winter POV

It's been dark for a few hours now. I glance over someone's shoulder to see what it shows on his watch. It's 11 o'clock, this meeting thing should be getting started now.

As I thought that Michael marched in wearing all black and all the chatter quickly silences. Actually, most of the people in here, as I looked around, are wearing black or dark colors. There are so many people. What's going on? What's this meeting about?  
Why is it so important that I come? I had so many questions.

As I was thinking through them Michael pronounces over the crowd,"We have a special guest here tonight." He finds me in the crowd."Winter will you please come to the front?" As I walk by, people start to stare and whisper. Seriously, what is going on?

I stand next to Michael and glance over at Daniel to see if I can find anything in his face that could tell me what might be happening. Nothing, his face showed no emotion. "I would like to formally introduce myself," Michael continued,"I am Michael Ben  
and I am the leader of this organization, you might call it." Leader? Organization? He started to speak to the crowd now. "This is Winter White…" What? I'm about to correct him on my last name but he keeps going,"daughter of Snow White and she is  
the rightful heir to the throne! She will bring us away from the darkness and back into the light! Long live Princess Winter!" He finished.

"Long live Princess Winter!" I heard the crowd cheer but it sounded far away. A princess? I can't be a princess! I have to explain this to Michael. As the meeting goes on I don't pay attention much. I heard enough to know that it is a war meeting.

After it's over I feel a hand on my shoulder. It's Daniel's. I turn all my rage on him. "Why didn't you tell me about all of this? Why didn't you tell me that was the only reason you wanted to help guide me through this forest? I'm not a princess! You guys don't know what you're talking about! I can't bring people out of the 'darkness' or whatever you father was talking about! Why didn't you tell me he was a leader?" I storm off leaving him with his mouth half open.

I barge into the tent that I saw Michael walk into after the meeting. He was looking over a few papers thoughtfully. "Winter, I've been meaning to talk to you." He looked a little startled to see me.

"I'm not a princess," I said a bit shaky.

"Have a seat and I can explain," he points to a chair across from him. I'm tired from the yelling I just did towards his son so I sit. "Let's start from the beginning…" he explains about how my parents met and how the forest was always a cheerful place, "but then your father turned on your mother. He abused her. When she found out that she was pregnant with you she confided in me about what was going on. She talked about running away from him but I never realized that she would actually do it." He stops to breathe and starts again, "One night she took off and ever since then the king, your father, has destroyed this land. He is a vicious ruler and that is why we have decided to form a rebellion against him. Now that you are here I hope that you will help us take back this kingdom and restore it to its former glory."

"How do you expect me to be able to do that?" I asked exasperated.

"Nothing in particular. You are more our symbol of freedom than anything," he tries to calm me.

"So, basically all I have to do is stand there and look like I'm meant to do that?"

"Precisely!" He sounds excited. 


	6. Chapter 6

*Daniel POV 

I walk around the camp with my eyes on the ground to calm myself down. It is a cooler night. I don't like her being angry with me. All I was doing was following orders. Why does she have to blow up on me? I'm the one who kept her safe. I rub my neck because I'm worn out from this day.

As I look up from the ground Winter steps out of my father's tent. Probably asking him the same questions she asked me. A smile instantly comes to my face. Wait, I never smile. Why is it that girl is making me smile? Her white hair is blowing a little in the wind. She is wearing the jacket I gave her last night. It's a couple sizes too big on her. She looks so fragile in it.

I started to stagger over to her before I knew what I was doing. I've felt drawn to her since I saw her since I was smaller. "Are you okay?" why'd I ask that? she should be the one apologizing to me!

She jerks her head in my direction. "I'm better than I was before, I guess. Sorry for yelling at you." She touches my arm. Her hand is warm through the jacket I am wearing. In a week the war will begin and I will have to keep her safe again. The strange part is I'm completely fine with it as long as she lives. It has always been hammered into my head that the princess must live, and now I don't think that it's my head telling me that anymore. 


	7. Chapter 7

*Winter POV

I yelled at him but yet he still comes to check on me, why? I felt bad for yelling at him but I felt a lot better afterward getting it out of my system and was able to talk to his father with a clear head.

I ended up letting Michael persuade me into doing it. I am now a "flag" for the people of this rebellion. I will, for the first time in my life, see my father and it will more than likely end up being the last time as well.

It all makes sense now. Mom never wanting to talk about the scars on herself and the nightmares she has. All the times she has told me to stay away from the Dark Forest. She was trying to protect me. But it was all lies. She lied to me my whole life.

I always knew that I was anything but normal. I am a princess and I will help to take my kingdom back. I will train and prepare as much as I can before next week. I am strong and I will become stronger. "I will help in the war," I stated firmly.

"That's fantastic!" He cheers and picks me up in a bear hug. He realized what he was doing and stopped. His face turned the color of a tomato and I started giggling. How could this guy get embarrassed so easy? "What's so funny?" he squinted at me.

"I never would have thought that someone like you could get embarrassed so easily, it's cute," I giggle and then stop, realizing that I just called him cute. Now I'm embarrassed!

"I'm cute, am I?" He raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"Well, umm…" I stammered. This is getting awkward. What do I do? I decide to look at the ground.

"Tiny," he raises my chin with a finger so that I'm staring straight at his blue eyes. They have lost their icy look to them and are now a darker blue color. I could stare at them forever.

He pulls me into a tight hug and whispers in my ear,"I may like you more than I should." I hug him back and that's enough of an answer for him because when we let go he is grinning ear to ear.

"Winter?" Someone calls and I turn towards the voice. "Winter!" She exclaims, runs and embraces me.

"Mom? How did yo… where did…" I'm too surprised to form a full sentence.

"I came after you when you didn't come back. I saw you running towards the forest but I didn't think you would actually go in. Then an hour rolled around and you didn't come back so I took off towards the forest…" she continues on about how she found  
/out that I had come here. All I could think though was that my mother loves me more than she fears my father. I glimpse over my shoulder and see that Michael has just come out of the tent and is staring at her.

"Snow?" He questions warily

"Michael?" Mom walks up to him. They exchange a look of recognition and a tear falls from Michael's eye.

"I never thought that I would get to see you again," and hugs her. At first her arms lay limp at her sides and then she slowly put them around him as well. "Your daughter just agreed to help us in the war to take back the forest. She has the same

spirit in her like you have, Snow," he tells her.

She turns around and stares at me,"How much has he told you?"

"Everything and I am willing to help take down my father," I state.

"I trust that you will make the right decision then." Her voice cracks a little. She clears her throat and begins again,"Well, it has been a long day and I'm sure that all of us need our rest."

"Oh of course. Snow, Winter, both of you are welcome to sleep in our tent,"Michael states and Daniel winks at me.


	8. Chapter 8

*Daniel POV

I can't sleep. I look at my watch. It's one in the morning. All my thoughts keep traveling back to Winter. She seemed hesitant when her mother came. Of course she probably didn't expect her mother to be there or to agree. I wonder if she is awake.

I roll out of my bed and sneak into where the couches are in the tent. She is asleep. She looks so peaceful. She has a few strands of hair in her face and I unconsciously move it out of her face and she stirs. I don't move for a few minutes to make sure  
sheis still asleep and then I go to sneak back into my room. "Daniel?" I hear a whisper. Damn! 

"Sorry, I couldn't sleep. Didn't mean to wake you," I looked over at her. She had propped her arm on the back of the couch with her chin on her hand. She looked so beautiful.

"Don't worry, it's fine," she yawned. "What's up?"

"Just checking on you to make sure you're safe." It's no longer just me needing to keep her safe. I truly want to keep her safe. She smiled at me and my heartbeat quickened. I need to get ahold of myself. "I hope you sleep well, Tiny."

"G'night," she yawned again.


	9. Chapter 9

*Winter's POV

The next morning we sat around a table and ate breakfast while mom and Michael caught up. I hadn't seen my mother laugh and smile like that in forever. She looked at peace with Michael.

I soon found out that Michael and mom were best friends before she ran off. They had grown up together and Michael used to meet up with mom after she left. I stopped listening after a while and started to think about all of this. "… she used wine  
all the time when he left," mom's voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I heard Daniel bust out laughing.

"What are you laughing at, son? You used to do the exact same thing when we'd leave." Michael smirked at his son. This was my cue to double over with laughter. After that I found out that Daniel and I are two years apart and the last time I had seen  
him was when I was two.

Apparently, that wasn't the last time Daniel had seen me though. Michael used to catch Daniel trying to sneak back over and would get as far as the edge of the forest. So that's who's eyes I used to see in the forest. Everything is starting to make  
sense now. I winked at him and his face turned a light shade of red and I grin which made his face darken another shade of red.


	10. Chapter 10

*Daniel POV

I need to calm down. She needs to stop looking at me so that I can. How is she able to push my buttons? This girl truly is something else. I shake myself on the inside. I can see why I had a claim on her when we were smaller. She is unique. She looks  
over at me again. Shit! I was staring. I feel my face heating up. She laughs at me. My face must be super red. "… and Daniel will be training Winter, won't you son?" Dad interrupts my inner monologue.  
"Of course," I wink at Winter. Her face turns red at that point. Hah! So the girl can be embarrassed! This is going to be an interesting experience.

That night we began her training for the war. "Try to attack me, don't worry I'll go easy on you," I say with a smirk. She has never used weapons before so I start her off with a staff. She runs at me and starts trying to hurt me. I had  
told her that I was just going to block her attacks when she saw that I hadn't grabbed a staff as well.  
After a few minutes I grab the staff to yank it out of her hands. She comes tumbling with it and I catch her when she falls into me. She looked up at me. We are so close. I can feel her trying to catch her breath. I tuck some stray hair that had fallen  
on to her face behind her ear. I glance at her mouth. I wonder what it feels like?  
Before I can process what is happening I am leaning towards it. She's not pulling back. That's a good sign, right? We kiss and she wraps her arms around my neck and I can't help but smile.


	11. Chapter 11

*Winter POV

The day of the war rolls around and everyone is getting ready. I take huge calming breaths to be able to focus on the mission better. I have to keep my mind clear. I am about to meet the reason my mom has to leave and the reason I was never able to  
see this place. He took everything from us because he decided that bruises are better than smiles and that tears of pain are better than those of joy.  
I was taught how to throw a knife and use a sword properly. I'm proud that I was able to learn that in a week. I am ready.

Everyone finished getting ready and we all marched towards the meeting tent. Michael started his pre-war speech and ended with"…We are stronger than them! We have to take back our land! Long live Queen Snow White and Princess Winter White!" And everyone  
echoed that last sentence and we marched out.  
We headed out mid-afternoon and got to the castle at dusk. The guards are completely unaware that we are there. The archers take out the guards one by one that are around the castle and we charge through the hug wooden doors.  
We climb up the huge stairway with mom on my left and Michael on her left and Daniel on my right. The soldiers are taking out the guards pretty easily so that's a good sign. I haven't really had to do much yet.  
We get to the door that leads to my father's workroom,a map someone took says so anyways, and they take out the two guards standing by the door. We have had very few people die so far. They either didn't see a guard coming for them or a guard was  
stronger than them but overall we still have most of us left.  
We barge into the room and there are guards all over who must have been waiting for us and a single man that stands behind them all with a crown on. Father.  
He sees my mother and his malicious smile fades a little but then scrapes across his face again. He sees me and looks back at mom and then at me again. He's realizing that I'm his daughter which means he is distracted. We have the upper hand right  
now. "Charge!" I shout and everyone sprints towards the guards and we start the war.


	12. Chapter 12

*Daniel POV

When I saw Winter this morning she looked like a regular girl and now that she has the armor on she looks like a true princess avenging her nation. She is beautiful.  
Stay focused. You have to keep her safe. As we clash against the king's army a use all my strength in every killing blow.  
As I look around I realize that where they kill two we only kill one. I try to tell that to dad through eye contact and he finally gets what I mean after a few minutes and he whispers something to Snow White and she slips behind the guards. She's  
searching for the king no doubt. 


	13. Chapter 13

*Winter POV

I see that mom disappeared but where? I look around when I get the chance and I see her sneak up behind and press the tip of a knife to my father's back and she tells him something.  
I see the color drain from his face and his hands shake a little. He calls over the murdering,"Halt!"  
Everyone stops to look at him and he is already on the ground pouring blood. Mom falls to her knees and I run to her side and drop next to her. She is crying. No doubt crying over all the suffering he put her through and the relief that it has all  
come to an end. It is over.

A few weeks tool by and mom and I are going through the crowning ceremony. Mom is in front of me on her throne and she has already accepted her right as Queen and now it is my turn to accept mine as a princess. I get to the front of the rows of people  
and turn my head towards Daniel and he gives me an encouraging nod as I pass him.  
I get to my throne and sit. The crown they bring out is beautiful. It is small and silver. Light shines off of it as they place it on my head. I knew that I was never truly normal.

THE END


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